NEW SPECIES of thread snake discovered on the Caribbean Island of Barbados, may be world’s smallest
A new species of threadsnake (Leptotyphlops carlae), which probably grows less than 4 inches long (about ten centimeters) and is as thin as spaghetti was discovered on the island of Barbados by S. Blair Hedges, a Professor of Biology from the Penn State Institutes of Energy and the Environment. Hedges has “discovered or co-discovered 72 species of amphibians and reptiles, including the smallest tetrapod (a frog) and smallest amniote vertebrate (a lizard).” He also helped describe what may be the world’s smallest lizard (below).
This new species of thread snake may not be the world’s smallest species, since other similar threadsnake species may be smaller. These little snakes are poorly known, so it is probably too early to determine which species is the smallest. Furthermore, few specimens exist of these fascinating little snakes in museums. Snakes from the genus Leptotyphlops are also known as blind snakes, and they burrow to feed on insect larvae. IMAGES by Blair Hedges/Pennsylvania State University. From Science News:
Hedges studied five adult Barbados threadsnakes, including a female that’s going to be the reference specimen for the new species. Hedges and Hass found her in a remnant of forest on the eastern side of Barbados in June 2006.
She carried a single egg in her oviduct. Animals at the miniature end of their species tend to reproduce one offspring at a time, often a baby relatively large in comparison to the mother, Hedges says.
He says the Barbados snake also fits another pattern: Islands are often homes for very large or very small species. Some lineages on continents never make it out to islands, so island dwellers have opportunities to fill niches they wouldn’t on the mainland. Hence, when searching for an unusual form of an animal, such as minis or giants, islands make good places to start looking.
Over his career, Hedges has codescribed other extreme herps: A frog smaller than a dime and the smallest known lizard. Each came from an island.
More thread snake images by Nate Kley, an evolutionary biologist and herpetologist:
On the Net: Snakes hold thread of evolution evidence
On the Net: Gobbling Food Helps Threadsnakes Avoid Danger; In A Snake-Eat-Ant World, It’s Survival Of The Fastest
On the Net: Weird jaws let tiny snake gulp fast
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Really? Newly discovered? The first time I had seen this snake was around 03. And just recently saw it 2 weeks ago. Dont tell me this is a newly discovered snake since I have seen this same thing where I live(Hawaii). Hawaiian Ground Snake is the name
To the ignorant clown above me, it’s a newly discovered species of thread snake (meaning that it’s an addition to the previously discovered thread snakes).
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Those things look weird… I’d freak if I saw a bunch ‘em crawling around.
By the way I wouldn’t freak if I saw them because that would make them scared but I’ve got to admitt they r cute.
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it’s not a newly species for Malaysian, i mean Malaysia isn’t a island country, but we can found it at any where in whole Malaysia and just that maybe Malaysian doen’t know that this species is not in the “founded” species. =D
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i love your work on the thread snake by any chance can you send me more info on it i am doing a projeck on it thnks.
I live in Fl. and I have found probably 6 or 8 thread snakes in my house. I will capture one and put it in dirt and see how it does.I have a couple I found but they are dead. I have no idea where they came from.
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